This application makes reference to, and claims all benefits accruing under 35 U.S.C. xc2xa7119 from the inventor""s two applications LCD MONITOR HAVING STAND both filed with the Korean Industrial Property Office on Oct. 26, 1999 and there duly assigned Serial No. 46555/1999 and 46557/1999.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display monitor(LCD monitor) stand having a multistage structure, more particularly, an LCD monitor stand having a multistage structure wherein an angle of a display unit is easily adjusted to obtain the best suited view angle and the supporting space can be enlarged by enabling to extend a stand unit frontward and rearward.
2. Description of the Prior Art
An LCD monitor is a light receiving type display apparatus which the variation of optical properties such as double refraction, rotatory polarization, double color, and light-scattering of a liquid crystal cell is visually converted by the variation of a molecule arrangement by applying a voltage to a liquid crystal. An LCD monitor which has the advantages of small size, simplicity to carry, and saving electric power, is widely used for output apparatus such as a television set, a computer and a video camera.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a structure of a conventional LCD monitor 10. As shown in FIG. 1, LCD monitor 10 comprises a liquid crystal panel 2 installed in a front case 1, and a display unit 5 having a main Printed Circuit Board (PCB) 4 installed in a rear case 3, connected to front case 1 and outputting a predetermined signal to liquid crystal panel 2.
LCD monitor 10 further comprises a stand unit 7 to which is connected a terminal 6 for signal and power cables transmitting an electric signal to main PCB 4 and a top stand interface 8 rotating display unit 5 right or left and upward or downward within the scope of a predetermined angle by a hinge connector 9 and a swiveling structure formed in stand unit 7.
As shown in FIG. 2, hinge connector 9 comprises a rotating bar 9a connected to the rear case, a rotating shaft 9b connected to an end portion of rotating bar 9a, and a bracket 9c connected to stand unit 7 and connected rotatably to rotating shaft 9b in an L shape.
Bracket 9c has a stopping hole 9d in the shape of a circular arc at the vertical part thereof. Bracket 9C also has an end stopper 9e in an L shape, connected to rotating shaft 9b, and inserted into a stopping hole 9d. Therefore, end stopper 9e runs between both ends of stopping hole 9d so that display unit 5 can be rotated upward and downward.
However, if the stopper is located at the middle of the stopping hole, the display unit is rotated downward and is not fixed, because of its own weight. Accordingly, only angles that resulted from both end portions of the stopping hole can be fixed, and it is not possible to select the best suited view angle from among various angles. Also, there is a problem in separating the stand unit from the display unit for packaging purposes.
In addition, LCD monitor 10 is characterized by a display contrast depending upon view direction when compared with general monitors, and an angle or location of such an LCD monitor needs to be set frequently in order to obtain the best-suited view angle. Accordingly, for stably rotating and moving display unit 5 within the scope of the predetermined viewing angles, stand unit 7 must have a comparatively large size. In order to support display unit 5 stably (which is progressively increasing in size because of the tendency to prefer large-sized monitors), stand unit 7 must also be made bigger, This causes it to need more space for installation, and consequently it increases in cost.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an LCD monitor stand having a multistage structure wherein a display unit can be fixed at various angles and can provide the best suited view angle, and wherein it is possible to support stably a large-sized display unit for rotation.
To achieve the objects of the present invention, a multistage structure is provided for an LCD monitor stand, which comprises a display unit for displaying an image and has a receiving groove part formed at the rear and lower portion thereof, a stand unit having top and bottom stands and supporting the above mentioned display unit, and a hinge connector mounted at both end portions of the stand unit, allowing the unit to be opened and closed completely when the display unit is rotated upward and downward and also to be fixed and released by detents at one step or more between complete opening and closure. A user can easily rotate the display unit and fix it at various angle for obtaining the best-suited view angle.
According to the present invention, the above-mentioned hinge connector allows the device to receive the rear part of the stand unit into the receiving groove part of the display unit when it is closed, so that it is possible to hang the LCD monitor on a wall.
The above-mentioned hinge connector comprises a rotating bar connected to the above display unit, a rotating shaft connected to an end of the above rotating bar and having a stop bar and a stop circular plate, and a bracket which is connected rotatably to the rotating shaft at one side thereof, and has a circular arc groove and a blocking bar having a blocking protrusion.
The stop bar has a vertical part and a horizontal part at the lower portion of the vertical part. The vertical part is connected to the rotating shaft, and the horizontal part is inserted into the circular arc groove of the bracket, so that the rotating shaft can be rotated only between both end portions of the circular arc groove.
The above stop circular plate is connected to the rotating shaft and has at least one protruding cog protruded from the outer surface, which is engaged with the blocking protrusion of the blocking bar, so that the stop circular plate can be rotated within a predetermined angle.
A spring is installed under the above blocking bar and a push button at the upper part thereof. If the push button is pushed, the blocking bar will move downward and the protruding cog of the stop circular plate will be released, and the stop circular plate can be rotated. If the pushed push button is released, the blocking bar will be returned at the previous position by the spring and thus stop the rotation of the stop circular plate.
In addition, the stand unit further comprises a wire stand installed at the front and rear sides thereof, and defining a supporting space, enabling the device to be folded forward and backward.
The wire stand comprises a front wire stand extended forward and a rear wire stand extended rearward, which have a protuberance at an end portion thereof. The wire stand comprises further, at an upper portion thereof, a wire holder having a guide hole formed in the same direction as the extension. The protuberance is inserted into the guide hole of the wire holder so that the wire stand can be folded toward the front and the rear of the stand unit.
As stated above, an LCD monitor stand having a multistage structure according to the present invention has the advantage of rotating (upward and downward) a display unit stopped in each step of the multistage structure and thereby obtaining the best-suited view angle. It is also possible to hang the LCD monitor on the wall when it is folded completely, and it is not necessary to separate the stand unit from the display unit for packaging. A display unit can be stably supported by the smallest stand in the minimum space, and consequently it is possible to decrease the cost and space for the installation.